Custody (REDRAFTED- NEW ONE IS POSTED)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

!!!!!Minor Angst Warning!!!!!!

“So after I passed out, we came here?”

“Nothing happened to the house but you can’t stay there. He is after you. That’s what he said.”

Draco frowned, adjusting in Harry’s lap and playing with the end of his tail. “Are you sure it wasn’t Damien Wardell?”

They looked at him, confused and wary. “What do you mean Damien Wardell?” Ron asked, sounding very tired.

“Damien and Ditch Wardell. I thought I told you about Damien.”

Harry covered Draco’s ears, making the blond squirm and struggle. Trying to ignore the unneccesary friction he was recieving, Harry kissed Draco’s temple, calming him down. Draco pouted but let his ears be covered. He didn’t like that he couldn’t hear anything but he trusted Harry. Besides. He was too bored and tired to care. This conversation wasn’t interesting. The way that Harry squirmed or caught his breath everytime Draco adjusted was interesting. He adjusted again, slouching his spine and pushed back slightly so he could be more against Harry’s chest ad stomach. At the sharp intake of breath he drew from Harry, he smirked.

Ron and Hermione rolled their eyes. Hermione thought it was cute how they acted. Ron was just getting fed up with the PDA. But with the tampered sleeping potion, Draco probably just needed reassurance from his mate.

“How do we know that he’s not hallucinating? Or something like that. Damien Wardell. We don’t know he exists and the only way to tell is Draco.”

“Harry what are you trying to say?”

“Should we believe him? I know that he wouldn’t be intentionally lying to us about something like this but… the potion might be making him hallucinate or something. If he knew this beforehand, why would he not tell us in the beginning when he told us about Ditch. How do we know that he isn’t under the effects of a potion?”

Hermione frowned. “Well, how about we wait until he’s got the potion completely out of his system. Like the way they do for people with a nicotine addiction. Make him drink a lot of water so he passes everything and make sure he sweats it out.”

“He is not going to like that.” Ron commented. “I don’t think that I’ve ever seen a Malfoy sweat. Not even on the Quidditch field.”

“I think I know how.” Hermione said with a smirk. Harry went red, glaring at her.

“No.”

“Fine. That was the quickest option. But I have another idea. Don’t worry. This’ll all work out. In the meantime, you should probably get him fed, then get him back to the room. The poor thing has already fallen back asleep.”

Harry looked down at Draco, surprised to find that the blond had fallen asleep. His bottlebrush tail was curled around him, gently flicking. When he let go of Draco’s ears, they popped up adorably. Ron started laughing, covering his mouth with his hand to muffle the noise, In his sleep, Draco adjusted and cuddled back against Harry even more.

“Alright. I’ll just take him back to the room. Do you mind putting Teddy to bed? Draco gets cranky when he’s woken up.”

Ron started laughing harder, making Hermione swat at his side. “Of course I will. It’s good practice.” She smiled at them, making a shooing motion. Harry picked up Draco who made a sleepy noise and curled up more against him.

Saying good night to Ron and Hermione and pushing aside the flap, Harry laid Draco down on the bed. The blond stirred, looking up at him sleepily. “Harry?”

“You did that on purpose and you know it.” Harry crossed his arms and glared down at his sleepy boyfriend. Draco sat up, looking confused. “What?”

“Practically giving me a lapdance in front of Ron and Hermione?”

“You didn’t dislike it.” Draco didn’t like the sense of panic that was starting to rise. He knew that as the submissive neko in the relationship, he was not supposed to upset his mate. That fact pissed him off to on end. But when he did make Harry mad, it woul make him feel awful. They had nearly gotten into a fight earlier which resulted in Harry having to coax Draco out from the bathroom. He hadn’t told Harry about this yet, seeing as it wasn’t important enough.

He was really regretting that decision.

“That’s not the point Malfoy.”

Draco flinched, clenching his fists in the sheets. He wanted to fight back. Tell him to knock it off. “I… What is your point then?.” To him, his voice sounded weak.

“I said I would wait until you are ready. You can’t just… tease me like that. I am more than willing to wait until you’re ready but it isn’t fair for you to tease like that.”

“What are going to do?” Draco’s hands were starting to shake. Did he really upset Harry that much? His tail was curled around him protectively. Stupid rules. He knew that this was the neko side acting up. Not him.

‘If a neko's mate gets angry with them, they will become incredibly submissive and do almost anything to please their mate. They are incredibly vulnerable in this state. Their urges will get much stronger. In the case of a neko who has just been Claimed, they might be fully adjusted to their mate and can go into heat early.’

The neko book had not gone wrong so far. And Harry had just Reclaimed him. He shifted, wanting to move back against the wall. A flare of heat has started at the base of his spine.

No. Not now. Please not now. I’m not ready. I dont want this. Please. I can’t do this yet.

…..I’m scared.

“I don’t know Malfoy.” Harry snapped irritatedly, running a hand through his hair. “If you said that you aren’t ready, I’m not going to… do anything with you.”

“Are you angry with me?”

Harry didn’t notice how timid and pained Draco’s voice sounded. He didn’t notice that Draco had pushed himself close to the wall, curling up into a tiny, defensive ball.

“I’m not angry Draco. I’m just frustrating. You’re giving me mixed signals and I want to know how much of it is you and how much of it is that other side of you.”

Draco mewled, squeezing his eyes shut. It was starting to hurt. The heat was everywhere, rippling under his skin, pooling somewhere he knew only Harry would be able to reach.

“I’m just going to go get you something to eat. You haven’t eaten all day and I think I need some space to calm down.” Harry sighed, moving over to the flap.

Please don’t leave me. Help…. It hurts.

Harry didn’t wait for Draco’s response, shoving aside the fabric flaps and disappearing.